Three ideas to motivate your calligraphy practice

During these last three months in lockdown, I’ve found it challenging to concentrate on my writing. These are three ideas to motivate your calligraphy practice. Is something else working for you? I would love to hear it,  so please leave a comment and share this post if you find it useful.

1- Have a single goal in mind

If I start my practice without a purpose in mind, I will see that in my final piece, the spacing is wrong, there are spelling mistakes, and the pressure on the pen is not consistent. So now I start with a goal in mind, and I focus on only one aspect of my writing at the time. For instance, if I want to improve the spacing on the letters and words, I ignore any other feature that is not related to my goal. That way, I can easily spot what needs improvement without feeling overwhelmed. 

2- Write about something that you like

Another thing that frustrates me is staring at a blank page, thinking of what to write.  As I love Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, I often start writing the names of the characters and places mentioned in the book and challenge myself to remember as many words as possible from memory. 

Another one of my favourite pieces of writing is Captain Wentworth’s love letter to Anne, from Persuasion, another novel by Jane Austen. I will look at past practice papers and decide on a feature I want to improve. Writing the same letter, again and again, helps me to avoid spelling mistakes.

3- Be part of an Envelope Exchange

I am a member of the Copperplate Special Interest Group, and I participate in their Envelope Exchange. Every six months, I receive a list of other five members’ details, and we write one envelope per month. It not only helps me to practice, but I am increasing a collection of different Copperplate samples to be inspired by. It is a delight to receive such beautiful mail!

I hope you will try some of these ideas and enjoy writing as much as I do. If you have enjoyed this article, please use the buttons below to share it in your social media.

Many thanks for reading my blog and see you next week.